From a reader | Cutting state funding to organizations has serious consequences – From a reader

PotassiumMany people will face difficult times and the number of people facing economic and other challenges will increase. The savings are not only for social security cuts at the individual level, but also for services provided by social security departments, etc. I focus on the services provided by social security organizations in the areas of peer support, guidance/counselling, support activities, hobby activities and training.

State funding for social welfare organisations will be drastically cut by around 130 million euros in the coming years, which cannot be reflected in service production. The funding cuts will be implemented at the end of the current government’s term.

It’s cold Biking and snowing to the cabin. It is clear that the current scope and content of the service network produced by the organizational field cannot be sustained due to such drastic funding cuts.

It is unclear how future funding decisions will be oriented and how the organization’s operations and services will be organized and produced. The concerns of participants in the organizational field are huge and genuine.

Many organizations will likely have to adjust their services, reduce or even terminate them. It is not possible to do everything with goodwill and volunteer activities; funding is also needed to organize services.

Now is Mapping of each organization’s different funding sources is ongoing to minimize the biggest losses from reduced state aid funding, which is clearly central and cannot be fully replaced by declining funding.

It is well known that the public sector cannot make up for the decline in services provided by organisations, and how can it do so in the future? The many kinds of work these organisations do are vital and are now under threat.

Finland “These deep cuts leave a grim mark on the organisations’ prevention work and support for the most vulnerable,” Kari Välimäki, chairperson of the board of the Social Welfare Association (SOSTE), said in April. “At a time when welfare regions are struggling under the pressure of increasing health and social care costs, it is impossible to understand the cuts.”

It’s easy to agree with that concern. So as an individual member of the organization, you can also say I fear the worst, but I hope for the best.

Kari Viholainen

Activist

Oulu